Despite Vice President Joe Biden’s repeated advice to invest in a shotgun and some shells, gun rights advocates often credit President Obama with being one of the best gun salesmen they ever had.
The numbers this year seem to bear that out. The Boston Globe reports this week that gun sales in the United States hit an all-time annual record in just the first 11 months of 2016, with more than 24.7 million criminal background checks processed.
US gun sales in 2016 appear to have already set single-year record https://t.co/bbzVgoNySt via @BostonGlobe pic.twitter.com/FcRof7bSEp
— Paul Bedard (@SecretsBedard) December 6, 2016
“The increasing numbers of checks in recent years has been attributed to fears that lawmakers might impose further restrictions on gun ownership,” writes Matt Rocheleau.
If that theory holds, then Black Friday should have been lousy for gun dealers. After all, with Donald Trump’s surprise election, the public would no longer be anxious about who exactly Hillary Clinton was referring to when she mentioned “we” in this tweet:
We can protect our Second Amendment rights AND take commonsense steps to prevent gun violence. It’s just a question of whether we choose to.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) April 11, 2016
Whew, no need to run out and stock up on firearms on Black Friday then. Reputable “real news” outlets like NPR, USA Today, and Reuters all predicted a bust in holiday gun sales following the election.
With Trump Win, Gun Sellers See Win — And Loss https://t.co/0vQ56caui0
— NPR Politics (@nprpolitics) November 16, 2016
Record sales in October, over concerns Clinton would win the WH, now leave gun shops concerned about December sales.https://t.co/UASxBMauyV pic.twitter.com/F9YgRsg2Q9
— Aegis Academy (@AegisAcademy) November 21, 2016
Here’s why gun shops probably won’t set a Black Friday sales record https://t.co/bq128bWF0p
— FORTUNE (@FortuneMagazine) November 21, 2016
Trump's win may blast gun sales record on Black Friday https://t.co/Gnjd3PaulA
— Greenland Liberation Force???? (@jasonmn) November 24, 2016
? Morning Headlines: Trump's win lowered the chances for another record-setting #BlackFriday for gun sales: https://t.co/sUuJvHOrJR pic.twitter.com/ualoMQQTcH
— States United (@SUPGVNetwork) November 25, 2016
Don’t these people ever get tired of being wrong?
Black Friday marks busiest day on record for FBI's background check system for gun sales: https://t.co/Qml1UVZyxK pic.twitter.com/Jtdl97QNQV
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) November 29, 2016
JUST IN: Colorado sets record with Black Friday gun sales background checks https://t.co/RLXTmlHWbp by @JesseAPaul pic.twitter.com/DyP1XqVbRg
— The Denver Post (@denverpost) December 1, 2016
Gun Sales Crush All-Time Record for the Month of November https://t.co/AqV08xMQJV pic.twitter.com/JG1k80D92F
— Bearing Arms (@BearingArmsCom) December 5, 2016
Black Friday sees record-breaking gun sales https://t.co/RQi2yU93iN pic.twitter.com/nxn83meEh0
— The Atlantic (@TheAtlantic) November 29, 2016
Record #BlackFriday #gun sales prove Americans all-in on #SecondAmendment rights, despite media bias/polls: https://t.co/dnUQ50U4IO @NRA pic.twitter.com/AfMolaN9tS
— NRA Blog (@NRAblog) December 4, 2016
What media bias?
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